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004 Disguise And Kill!
🕑 Added 2025-06-16 12:03:50 +0000 UTCOutside the door.
After Mr. Paradox exited, he turned left and entered another room through the corridor.
The walls were lined with hundreds of old-fashioned, large CRT display screens, and over a dozen TVA technicians in special glasses were rapidly adjusting them.
As soon as he stepped inside, he asked:
"Tesseract, any clues?"
Tesseract, like him, Mobius M. Mobius, and Ouroboros, were all high-level supervisors of the Time Variance Authority, under the leadership of the Chief Judge.
"Absolutely nothing," Tesseract replied, turning his head with a frown.
"This person seems to have appeared out of thin air—no past, no future, and no associated records."
"It's completely irrational. Unscientific."
Mr. Paradox was visibly surprised by this.
Although he’d already guessed the person’s origins were untraceable—hence why he played the “good guy” earlier—he still found the result hard to believe.
Something like this had never happened before in the TVA.
It made him even more curious about this young man's identity.
After a moment of thought, he suggested:
"Maybe the Watcher knows something. Why not have Mobius ask him? If he slips up, the Chief Judge will surely forgive it."
The TVA certainly had records on the Watcher—an ancient cosmic being who observes events across the multiverse and knows countless universal secrets.
Tesseract replied solemnly:
"Don't even think about violating TVA regulations. If you try, I’ll report you immediately!"
Paradox quickly smiled and waved it off as a joke, then added:
"Well, maybe I’ll get something useful out of him anyway."
Acting? That was his specialty.
Surely, he could deceive a young man. After lingering a few more minutes, Mr. Paradox left the room.
The moment he stepped outside, the smile in his eyes vanished—replaced by contempt.
“Useless fool. Once I get promoted, I’ll have him fired and tossed into the Void…”
Click.
The door handle turned, and Mr. Paradox entered the room again with an elegant smile.
He looked at the time criminal, still frozen in place, and nodded slightly.
"I think you’ve had enough time to think things over."
"If I wanted to harm you, I could’ve erased you from existence the moment you arrived. Complete disintegration. No harm would be done."
He still couldn’t understand why the upper ranks insisted on identifying this person.
Just toss him into the Void and let Alioth devour him—no trace of time left, no risks.
But since the Chief Judge had given the order, no one dared disobey.
After a pause, Mr. Paradox continued:
"Let’s end this tedious procedure. You go home, and I complete my report."
"To demonstrate the TVA’s goodwill..."
He raised his hand and, very deliberately, pressed the controller in full view of the time prisoner.
The light on the time collar switched from red to green.
In an instant, Russell felt the world loosen—like he was breaking out of amber. He could finally move again.
He didn’t rush forward this time, but remained seated, eyes wide in disbelief.
"Was that… time manipulation?!"
"How is that even possible?!"
Mr. Paradox was very satisfied with the look of shock on Russell’s face—it gave him a sense of superiority.
"That’s just the basic function of the time controller."
"Expanding dimensions, creating spatial constructs, time travel, energy-material conversion, time anchoring, seeing into the future and past… the TVA’s power is far beyond what humans like you can imagine."
With that, he returned the controller to his pocket and sat down across from him again.
Thanks to the effects of the [Knowledge Curse] entry, Russell easily detected the arrogance hidden behind Mr. Paradox’s words.
He sneered inwardly, but outwardly his expression became even more shocked.
Then he showed a hint of respect, nodded seriously, and said:
"You’re right. I was being naive. The fact that someone like me is still alive proves your organization’s kindness and fairness."
"I should definitely cooperate..."
Mr. Paradox’s lips curled slightly.
Too easy.
Just an average guy—nothing to worry about.
But at that moment, Russell showed a flicker of embarrassment.
"What’s wrong?" Mr. Paradox asked.
Russell replied awkwardly:
"I was just a regular Earthling before. I’m a freshman at the National Sports University."
"I don’t know how I violated the timeline. I just know a lightning bolt struck me… and then I collided with some kind of terrifying fire guy."
He added anxiously:
"It was an accident. I didn’t mean to kill him. You’re not going to convict me for that, right?"
Russell didn’t know if the TVA had lie detectors, so he decided to avoid outright lying.
Mr. Paradox raised an eyebrow. Lightning causing time travel? It sounded like something out of a sci-fi novel.
But time was unpredictable—so maybe it wasn’t impossible.
Still, that wasn’t the point.
"What’s your full identity?" he asked.
"And when and where were you struck by lightning?"
Then he leaned forward slightly, his voice sharpening:
"Don’t lie. This room is equipped with a TVA-grade lie detection system. It reads heart rate, micro-breathing patterns, pupil dilation, facial microexpressions. If you lie, I won’t be able to protect you."
No wonder Mobius always knew Loki was lying… must be this tech. Russell thought.
Still playing his part, Russell appeared nervous and quickly said:
"I’m not lying! I really am a student. I really was just a normal person, and I really was struck by lightning…"
Mr. Paradox was getting annoyed.
"Stop repeating yourself. Just tell me your identity!"
Russell nodded and was about to respond—when suddenly his expression shifted. He covered his mouth and nose and began coughing violently.
Mr. Paradox frowned in disgust, assuming this time criminal had some disease.
Still, TVA tech could cure anything. He forced a smile, leaned forward, and said:
"Are you feeling sick?"
"Don’t worry. TVA can cure whatever it is. Just calm down—"
Before he could finish, Russell suddenly raised his head.
The golden light in his pupils was unmistakable.
No panic. No pain.
He’s faking?!
He dared to lie to me?!
Mr. Paradox’s first thought was rage. Then… confidence.
Foolish monkey. Think you can outplay me?
His right hand may not have been in his pocket, but in just one second, he could reach in and hit the collar's pause button.
He was a time supervisor, not some idiot!
A smirk formed at the corner of his mouth.
This time he’d teach him a lesson—a real TVA interrogation!
But just as he moved to reach into his pocket, he noticed something odd:
A mocking glint in Russell’s eyes.
Playful?
Why?
He hadn’t even made a move!
And the next moment—Russell lowered his hand from his mouth and nose.
His chest compressed suddenly.
"Puff!"
Mr. Paradox’s eyes widened.
A searing fireball erupted from Russell’s chest like a meteor, blazing through the two-meter gap in an instant!
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